Spring Has Sprung

Yesterday was the first day of  Spring.

But not really.

Officially, but not really. 

The first day of Spring is just an arbitrary date on a calendar.  Somebody, somewhere, way back when picked a day and said, "Hey, I think I'll make spring start on this date."  Then his buddy said, "Hey, let's say that spring starts on the day of the Vernal Equinox!"  And the first guy said, "OK, then.  Spring starts on the day of the Vernal Equinox." 

And that's how the first day of spring became the first day of spring. But, as we all know, nature doesn't look at a calendar.

Around here, spring starts when the daffodils start coming up.  That was about two weeks ago.  Some years, spring comes earlier than others.  I've seen daffodils blooming in late January, but most often, they start coming up in mid February.

No matter how you look at it, spring is here, and it's making me want to get out and work in my flower beds.  It's still too early to plant.  I don't usually do that until after Easter, which is April 20th this year.  But I can get out and start clearing the old stuff out of the beds, and enriching the soil.

I walked through the garden center at Wal-mart and they are starting to get their flowers in.  Just a few so far.  No Lantanas or Zinnias yet, but a few marigolds and some other stuff. 

This is a Gerbera Daisy.  I haven't had any of these before. 

Technically, it's a perennial, but in my planting zone, it's treated like an annual, because it won't survive the winter.  I'm thinking I may put it into one of my planters, so I can bring it in at night.  It's still getting kind of cold at night, but warm in the day.

Oh, this is the most difficult time of the year!  When it's warm enough to want to get out into the flower beds, but still getting too cold at night to plant anything. 

It's like waiting for Christmas.